When Nicola Wright's family is torn apart by tragedy, she must confront her own mortality and find a way to heal and keep her loved ones together.
Nicola Wright's fingers danced across the keyboard as she checked the weather forecast on her phone, the screen glowing with a soft blue light in the dim morning air. She was sipping her coffee, the rich aroma filling the kitchen, as she scanned the Doppler radar images for any signs of turbulence over the Devon skies. The forecast looked good – just a gentle breeze and scattered cumulus clouds expected at Dunkeswell Airfield.
In the background, the sound system in the kitchen played a soft rendition of "River Flows in You" by Yiruma, a calming melody that usually helped her focus before a flight. Nicola's eyes wandered to the clock on the wall – 7:45 AM. She had just enough time to grab some breakfast and get out the door before heading to the airfield.
As she poured herself another cup of coffee, the kitchen door swung open and Emily, her eldest child, walked in with a sleepy expression on her face. "Mum, I forgot my lunch," Emily said, rubbing her eyes. Nicola smiled and handed her a packed bag from the counter. "It's all here, sweetie. You'll be fine."
Ben, her middle child, burst into the kitchen next, chattering excitedly about his day at school. "Can I have a banana for breakfast, Mum?" he asked, bouncing up and down on his toes. Nicola laughed and handed him a banana from the fruit bowl. "Of course, Ben. Eat it while you're getting your backpack."
Lily, her youngest, trailed in behind her siblings, still clutching her favourite stuffed rabbit, Mr. Whiskers. "Mum, I don't want to go to school today," she said, pouting. Nicola knelt down beside Lily and gave her a gentle hug. "I know it's hard to leave you all this morning, but Daddy will be home soon, and we'll have a special dinner together tonight."
As the children finished their breakfasts, Nicola checked her watch again – 8:05 AM. She needed to get going if she was going to make it to Dunkeswell on time for her training session with Captain James. With a quick kiss on each of her children's foreheads, she ushered them out the door and into the waiting taxi that would take them to school.
The kitchen fell quiet as Nicola stood at the sink, washing down the last of the breakfast dishes. She felt a sense of contentment wash over her – this was what she loved about mornings – the routine, the chaos, and the love that filled every moment. Little did she know, today would be anything but ordinary…
© 2026 Peter Mayhew. All rights reserved.
Beyond the Last Horizon and all of its contents are the copyright of Peter Mayhew. No part of this work may be reproduced, copied, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise — without the prior written permission of the copyright holder, except for brief quotations used in a review or as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and events are products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously; any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
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